sonible true:level Versatile and Precise Loudness Dynamics and True Peak Metering Plug In User Manual

: June 9, 2024
: sonible

sonible truelevel Versatile and Precise Loudness Dynamics and True Peak Metering Plug In

Welcome to true: level

true: level is a versatile and precise loudness, dynamics and true peak metering plug-in. Due to its unique Loudness and Dynamics Grid, you’ll find that true: level is an excellent help in finding the right trade-off between the loudness and dynamics of a mix. Selectable common references enable you to compare a track against pre-de – fined loudness standards and typical dynamics values for genres or custom reference tracks.

Whenever you want to make sure that your mix meets the specifications of some streaming platform or you want to compare the dynamics of your sound with your favorite track as reference – true: level is the right tool for the task.

Plus, all the reference options in true: level let you quickly identify potential issues in your mix – and, with a level check it offers great guidance regarding necessary actions to fix problems.

Get started with true: level and have fun getting your track ready for its big release!

Install

System requirements

CPU
Intel Core i5 Apple M1
RAM
4GB
Operating systems
Graphics Windows 10+ (64 bit)
Mac OS 10.12+
OpenGL Version 3.2+

You will need admin privileges to successfully install the true: level plug- in.

Mac OSX

To start the installation process, please open the disk image stonable true level x.x.x.dmg. This will mount the image and open a finder window showing the content of the installation package.

To install true: level on your system, run the installation file true level. pkg.

The installer will now guide you through the necessary steps to install true: level on your computer. true: level will automatically be installed in the default locations for audio plug-ins.

Default folders:

Audio Unit
/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/Components/

VST
/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST/

VST3
/Library/Audio/Plug-Ins/VST3/

AAX
/Library/Application Support/Avid/Audio/ Plug-Ins/

Windows

To start the installation process, extract the downloaded zip-file sonible_truelevel_win_x.x.x.zip onto your hard disk and run the installer.

The installer will now guide you through the necessary steps to install true: level on your computer. true: level will automatically be installed in the default locations for audio plug-ins.

Default folders:

VST3
C:\Program Files\Common Files\VST3\
VST
C:\Program Files\Common Files\VST\
AAX
C:\Program Files\Common Files\Avid\Audio\Plug-Ins

Authorization

Licensing system

You can select between two licensing systems: machine based or iLok (USB dongle).

By creating a user account on www.sonible.com and registering your products – if they are not already visible in your Dashboard, you can manage your plug-in activations.

Machine-based

Each license key allows you to install true: level on two computers with unique system IDs. These system IDs are computed during license activation.

The same license can be used by multiple users, but each user has to individually unlock the full version of true: level under their account.

In case a system-ID is changed (e.g. replacement of the hard drive), you can revoke/activate the plug-in next to the respective system-ID in the Dashboard of your stonable user account.

ILok

If you want to transfer one activation to your ilk, just make sure the plug-in is registered in your stonable user account. Click on the button „transfer to ilk“ next to the plug-in in your Dashboard and follow the instructions.

Note: 1st gen ilk dongles and the ilk Cloud are currently not supported.

Unlocking

If you purchased a license for true: level online, you receive your license key via email.

Machine-based unlocking

When opening true: level for the first time, a notification window will be displayed asking you to unlock true: level with a valid license key.

Please make sure that your computer is connected to the internet before starting the registration process. Enter your license key and click „register.“ The plug-in will now communicate with our server to check if the license is valid. If it is – enjoy! 🙂

iLok

If you transferred your license to an iLok, simply attach the iLok to your computer. The plug-in will then be automatically registered – enjoy!

If you don’t receive the email within minutes please check your junk folder first before contacting our support (support@sonible.com).

Trial version

To run true: level in demo-mode, simply click ”try” and you will then be able to use true: level for a couple of days without any limitations. (Please refer to our website to find out more about the current demo period of true: level)

When the demo period expires, you will need to purchase a full license in order to continue using the plug-in.

Internet connection requirements

sonible plug-ins only needs an internet connection during the trial period and for initial license activation. During the trial period, the plug-in needs to go online every time it is used. Once the license of your plug-in has successfully been activated, an internet connection is no longer needed.

User interface

Key-Readouts

The key-readout section provides a quick overview over the most important metering values. Target indicators below each readout make it easy to track changes made to the signal. The target indicator and the respective readout turn green if the measured value meets the value of the reference

true: level is using the median of all measured PSR (peak to short-term loudness ratio) values for measuring the dynamics of a track. Compared to the well-known PLR (peak to long-term loudness ratio) value used by other tools, our experiments showed that our PSR based descriptor better traces the actual dynamics of a track, including short-term dynamics.

Measurement Controls

The time base used to compute the loudness and dynamics values (integrated, short term, momentary) can be changed by clicking the measurement mode selector in the bottom right corner of the user interface.

You can pause or reset the measurement by clicking the play/pause and the reset icon next to the selected measurement mode.

What is loudness?

The perceived loudness of a piece of audio is commonly measured in LUFS (Loudness Units relative to Full Scale) according to the EBU R128 standard. Technically speaking, LUFS are the unit of measurement used in the process of quantifying the loudness of audio material. To compute the LUFS value of some piece of music (often referred to as program loudness), the average level of the audio material combined with perceptual filters are analyzed over time.

What is loudness normalization?

Two pieces of music with the same LUFS level are be perceived as equally loud. That’s why most streaming platforms nowadays normalize all audio material to a certain LUFS level – to guarantee a consistent perceived loudness among consecutive tracks. They turn down tracks louder than a certain reference loudness and most of them also turn up tracks that are quieter than this reference.

Integrated

The integrated measurement represents the average loudness and dynamics over a long observation period – when measured over the entire audio track, the loudness qualifies as the so-called program loudness. The program loudness is also the value streaming platforms are referring to when talking about the loudness of a track. Please note that only long observation periods (>60s) allow for a valid integrated measurement according to the EBU R128 standard.

Short-term

The short-term measurement values are computed over sliding blocks of 3 seconds. The values typically change over time and provide valuable information regarding the loudness and dynamics of different sections of a track.

Momentary

The momentary measurement values are computed over sliding blocks of 400ms and help to identify overly dynamic loudness peaks.

Loudness and Dynamics Grid

The loudness and the dynamics of a track are highly interrelated. Increasing the loudness of a signal often reduces its dynamics, for example when using a limiter. The Loudness and Dynamics Grid helps to find the right trade-off between the loudness of a track and its dynamics – and provides a holistic overview over both values.

The vertical axis of the grid represents the loudness in LUFS while the horizontal axis represents the dynamics in dB. The grid also shows a reference loudness area as specified by your chosen loudness reference as well as a suggested dynamics area based on your dynamics reference.

The loudness meter on the right displays the current integrated loudness value. The color of the integrated meter is gray for values below the reference loudness, green for loudness values falling into the recommended loudness area and yellow or red for values exceeding the recommended loudness. The current loudness range (LRA) is indicated by a gray brace next to the integrated meter.

Loudness & Dynamics References

Making sure that loudness and dynamics are in a good shape is important when publishing a track. Hitting the right loudness level helps to avoid any surprises when publishing the track to different publishing targets (e.g. streaming platforms) and nailing the dynamics is important for the overall quality of the mix.

true: level’s references provide two simple, yet precise ways to compare the qualities of a mix against references:

Common References

The common references for loudness and dynamics provide an extensive list of predefined reference targets. While the loudness references cover the specifications for different delivery platforms and loudness standards, the pre-defined dynamics references are based on the typical dynamics of musical genres.

Most streaming platforms only require a certain minimum loudness. All loudness values above this loudness are fine as indicated by a green area inside the Loudness and Dynamics grid.

Loudness standards suggest actual loudness target values. In this case, only the target value (plus a tolerance area) represents a good loudness value, indicated by a green horizontal bar inside the Loudness and Dynamics grid.

Reference Tracks

To compare your track against one or multiple existing mixes, you can load up to 8 reference tracks. Every track will be analyzed and its loudness and dynamics information will be extracted.

If the reference-track section is selected as the current target, the combined information from all active reference tracks is used to compute the reference zone. Active reference tracks are displayed inside the Loudness and Dynamics grid as small crosshair in the color of the track.

Output Meter

Level Check

Presets

A preset saves the settings of the plug-in, including all currently loaded reference tracks. This means that a preset can be used to compare multiple different tracks (e.g. of an album) against the same custom references.

To delete a preset or change its name, go to the preset folder in your local file explorer.

You can easily share your presets among different workstations. All presets are saved with the file extension “.spr” in the following folders:

Preset Folders

OSX: ~/Library/Audio/Presets/stonable/true level Windows: My Documents\Presets\stonable\true level